NASCAR Notes

Thursday, August 20, 2020

Action-packed Cup doubleheader weekend at The Monster Mile

This weekend Dover International Speedway will become just the third track in NASCAR Cup Series history to run a doubleheader at the same facility in consecutive days, joining Pocono Raceway (June 27-28, 2020) and Michigan International Speedway (Aug. 8-9, 2020). First up, is Saturday’s Drydene 311 (1) at 4 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio, followed by Sunday’s Drydene 311 at 4 p.m. ET on NBCSN, MRN and SiriusXM NASCAR Radio.

The two Cup events this weekend at Dover International Speedway will be mirror images of each other. Both races are 311 laps each (311 miles) and each race is broken up into three stages. The first stage for both races is 70 laps, the second stage is 115 laps and the final stage is 126 laps.

The official opening of Dover International Speedway, then called Dover Downs International Speedway, was in 1969. Dover has hosted 100 NASCAR Cup Series races, dating back to the inaugural event on July 6, 1969 - won by NASCAR Hall of Famer Richard Petty (Ford). The 100 NASCAR Cup Series races at Dover have produced 42 different pole winners and 37 different race winners. NASCAR Hall of Famer David Pearson leads the series in poles at Dover with six (1969, 1973 sweep, 1974, 1975, 1981). Roush Fenway Racing’s Ryan Newman (2003, 2005, 2006, 2007) and Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin (2012, 2013, 2015, 2019) lead all active series drivers in poles at Dover with four each. Hendrick Motorsport’s Jimmie Johnson leads the series in wins at Dover with 11 victories (2002 sweep, 2005 Playoffs, 2009 sweep, 2010 Playoffs, Spring of 2012, 2013 Playoffs, Spring of 2014, Spring of 2015 and Spring of 2017).

There are nine former Cup Dover winners entered this weekend – Johnson (11 wins), Kyle Busch (three), Martin Truex Jr. (three), Matt Kenseth (three), Ryan Newman (two), Kevin Harvick (two), Brad Keselowski (one), Chase Elliott (one) and Kurt Busch (one). Truex is the most recent winner entered this weekend, taking the checkered flag at Dover in last year’s May race.

Last season, Chase Elliott won the pole for the first Dover (May) race and then Denny Hamlin won the pole for the second Dover (Oct.) race setting a new track record at 166.984 mph, 21.559 seconds. This season, the Cup Dover pole for the Drydene 311 (1) was decided by metric qualifying and Hendrick Motorsport’s Chase Elliott, who is coming off his second win of the season last weekend at the Daytona Road Course, will start first and Joe Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin will complete the front row for Saturday’s race, starting second.

Jimmie Johnson is 25/1 to win at Dover

Jimmie Johnson has 11 wins at Dover.

Driver Jimmie Johnson on racing at Dover for the final time:
“We are very excited for this weekend at Dover. It’s hands down my favorite track, and from the pictures I have seen, there is a lot of Ally signage all over the place. It’s a homecoming of sorts. Performance-wise, last weekend at the DAYTONA Road Course we had a solid day. We needed that. Because of our fourth-place finish, we will be starting sixth Saturday at Dover, which is really an advantage to where we have been starting lately. With the random draw and the way track position has been working out, I feel like we have had things stacked against us for a while. This will be a good advantage for us, and we just have to go out there and get it done.”

JOHNSON’S PLAYGROUND: Jimmie Johnson is just one win shy of matching the record for the most all-time at Dover International Speedway. He currently has 11 wins while NASCAR Hall of Famer Darrell Waltrip has 12. Johnson has led the most laps of any other driver at Dover with 3,110, which is 307 more than second-place Bobby Allison. His 9.92 average finish across 36 Dover starts is the third-best among active drivers, and he has a total of 25 top-10 finishes there. In the five races since his last “Monster Mile” win in June 2017, Johnson has three top-10 results at the track.

MONSTER ALLY: Ally Financial, a leading digital financial-services company and the primary sponsor of 11-time Dover winner and seven-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Johnson, will be the presenting partner of the track’s Monster Monument at Victory Plaza and the Monster Bridge suite complex overlooking Turn 3. Earlier this week, the No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE was installed into the waiting hand of the Monster Monument at Victory Plaza, presented by Ally. Click here for more.

DOWNLOADING WITH DALE: This week Johnson joined former Hendrick Motorsports teammate Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the popular “Dale Jr. Download” podcast where he unveiled his Darlington Raceway “throwback” paint scheme and talked about his final season of full-time racing. Portions of the podcast will air on Saturday, Aug. 22 on NBC Sports Network before the NASCAR Cup Series race at Dover. Click here for the full podcast, which is available now.

SITE OF LAST WIN: Not only has Johnson shared tremendous success at Dover but it was the site of his most recent points win. On June 4, 2017, he led for seven laps but it was enough to put him in contention to drive the No. 48 to victory lane for the 11th time at the 1-mile concrete oval, tying him for sixth on NASCAR’s all-time wins list.

8-BIT GAME: Ally recently launched an 8-bit web-based video game for fans to enjoy. The free 1980s-style game can be played at www.allyracer.com. Players must steer around obstacles like oil slicks, tire debris and other cars while trying to beat the clock and other race cars to the checkered flag. Hitting financial targets, literally, generates bonus points by driving through Ally Financial "rewards" such as coins and plum-colored dollar bills that pop up on the track. Those rewards are banked for future use, so players can choose when to withdraw the rewards and help boost their score as they reach more challenging levels within the game.

NEW-LOOK 48: Johnson and Ally Financial chief marketing officer Andrea Brimmer felt the No. 48 team would benefit from a championship-caliber reset as it pushes to make the playoffs this season. Revealed last week, the new white-based No. 48 Ally Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE will serve as his primary paint scheme for the remainder of the 2020 season. Johnson playfully called the new look the “rALLY” car on his social media channels. Click here for photos of the scheme.

PLAYOFF PUSH: After last weekend’s solid fourth-place finish at the DAYTONA Road Course, Johnson is 17th in points, just 25 below the cut line with three races remaining in the push to the playoffs.

HELMET OF HOPE: This weekend, Johnson will wear the Blue Bunny Helmet of Hope, which honors five charities that support K-12 public education. This year, the program was expanded to allow non-profits that provide services to school-age students who have been directly impacted by the COVID-19 crisis to participate. In addition to being featured on Johnson’s helmet, each of the recipients were also awarded a $25,000 grant and a Blue Bunny Ice Cream party. This year’s grant recipients are: DMF Youth Inc. (New York City); Foodbank of Siouxland (Sioux City, Iowa); National Mental Health Association of Georgia (Atlanta); TABLE Inc. (Carrboro, North Carolina) and Working in the Schools (Chicago).

2020 Season

17th in standings
22 starts
0 wins
0 pole positions
3 top-five finishes
7 top-10 finishes
99 laps led

Career

673 starts
83 wins
36 pole positions
230 top-five finishes
371 top-10 finishes
18,933 laps led

Track Career

36 starts
11 wins
5 pole positions
17 top-five finishes
25 top-10 finishes
3,110 laps led

Wednesday, August 19, 2020

2020 Indianapolis 500 running in August and not May for first time

Marco Andretti starts from the pole. He's 12/1 to win Indy 500.

The 104th running of the Indianapolis 500 happens Sunday at the most famous track in the world and if you do a double take at the calendar to verify it’s not Memorial Day weekend, you’re not alone.

Since the first Indy 500 was run on the bricks in 1911, only two World Wars have stopped the annual race from happening on Memorial Day weekend, a total of 103 races.

But COVID-19 is a formidable adversary in 2020 so the thing to do is race the Indy 500 in August with no fans in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s stands that usually seat up to 400,000 each year.

The NTT IndyCar Series has had six previous races this season, four of them road courses, and despite little fanfare or coverage, bettors at the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook have shown interest in betting it.

“We’ve been writing more on the previous six IndyCar races than you’d think and we’ve had good volume on the Indy 500 since we reposted it with the new date,” SuperBook manager Ed Salmons said. “It’s become more popular and appears to be picking up steam.”

Scott Dixon has won three of the races so far and the 2008 Indy 500 winner comes in as the SuperBook’s 9-2 favorite, while 2014 Indy 500 winner Ryan Hunter-Reay is next at 8-1. All other drivers are 10-1 or higher, including last year’s winner, Simon Pagenaud, who is 10-1. Marco Andretti (12-1) will start from the pole.

“I’m not high on Andretti at all, but him on the pole doesn’t surprise me because everything I’ve read from people who know the IndyCar stuff well said that Honda had a huge advantage in qualifying,” Salmons said. “Team Penske didn’t qualify well but they’ll be just fine as the race goes on.”

Salmons has made lines for the Indy 500 for almost three decades. And while his process has changed, his approach to oddsmaking has stayed relatively the same after the Internet era began.

READ MORE HERE...GAMING TODAY, INDY 500 TOP-5 FINISH PREDICTION

Kevin Harvick is 3/1 favorite to win Saturday at Dover

KEVIN HARVICK

Tournament Time

KANNAPOLIS, North Carolina (Aug. 18, 2020) – From 1911 to 1997, the Indiana High School Athletic Association boys basketball state tournament was one of the greatest sporting events in the country.

It was one class, so every school, no matter the size, was in the same tournament. In the later days of the tournament, the opening round was the sectional, which consisted of six to eight teams, and games were played on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday. After the sectional there were 64 teams left and they played the regional, semi-state and state finals on three consecutive Saturdays.

The semifinal games of the regional, semi-state and state finals were conducted at 10 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. with the final played at 8 p.m. Players preferred the 10 a.m. game because it afforded more time to rest the legs for the 8 p.m. final. And those who played in the 12:30 p.m. game often prayed that the 10 a.m. game didn’t go into overtime.

It will be a little bit of the same feel this week for the NASCAR Cup Series doubleheader at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. Both races are 311 mile events and will take place at 4 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. It’s the fifth and sixth race in August for the Cup Series competitors and the second doubleheader of the month.

Kevin Harvick, driver of the No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR), will again have the help of Mobil 1 on board as a sponsor and partner, and that relationship paid off nicely for Harvick two weekends ago at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn. For racing twice with just one Ford engine in more than 90 degree air temperatures Saturday and Sunday, he totaled 634 miles in the twin events and came home with two trophies thanks to the advantage Mobil 1 technology gave him and the No. 4 team.

Mobil 1 isn’t just the world’s leading synthetic motor oil brand, it also provides the entire SHR team with leading lubricant technology, ensuring that all SHR Mustangs have a competitive edge over the competition on the track. In its 18th consecutive season as the “Official Motor Oil of NASCAR,” Mobil 1 is used by more than 50 percent of teams throughout NASCAR’s top three series.

Harvick will make history once again this weekend as he will pass Rusty Wallace and move into 16th place in all-time NASCAR Cup Series starts. He’ll tie Wallace at 705 on Saturday, then add start No. 706 on Sunday. He’s also hoping to score a win, which would move him past Wallace and into a tie for ninth all-time with Kyle Busch at 56 career wins.

Harvick leads the driver standings by 118 points over Denny Hamlin as the NASCAR “tournament” is set to start Sept. 6 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway.

KEVIN HARVICK, Driver of the No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

You’ve had a lot of success at Dover in the last few years. What are your thoughts on that track?

“For a number of years, it was my worst track. And the biggest key to solving the Monster Mile is having the right stuff. Rodney Childers (crew chief) and everyone on my team has done a great job of bringing fast racecars and it’s really become one of our best racetracks. It’s going to be a tough weekend running two races in one weekend. That’s one of our more physical racetracks. To go there and run both of those events back to back will be something you’ll have to be prepared for. It’s one of my favorite racetracks just because you have to drive the car really hard every lap in order to make good lap times. Going back with the low-downforce package this year is something I’m looking forward to. It’ll be a lot of fun and the expectations will be high.”

Describe what it’s like to take a lap around Dover.

“Dover is the racetrack where you feel the sensation of speed more than anything. It’s a place where you drop off into the corner and slam into a lot of banking and then, as you come out of the corner, it’s kind of like jumping out of a hole and up onto the straightaway. It’s a really fun place to race. You feel that sensation of speed and you can be really aggressive.”

Why do your prefer Mobil 1 synthetic?

“I’m a synthetic guy because, in 1993 when we were sitting in the engine shop, we dumped Mobil 1 synthetic in and that’s all we did and gained seven horsepower. From that day on, we would actually save our money and then go to the local auto parts store because, at that time, it was like $5.50 a quart and the conventional and other oils were like $3.50. At the big races, we would put the Mobil 1 in the car and the regular races would put the regular oil in there. You know I’m going to say synthetic.”

Aric Almirola is 20/1 to win at Dover

ARIC ALMIROLA

The Dover Double

KANNAPOLIS, North Carolina (Aug. 18, 2020) – Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 10 Smithfield Hometown Original Heroes Ford for Stewart-Haas Racing (SHR) in the NASCAR Cup Series, will race in his third doubleheader weekend of the year Saturday and Sunday at Dover (Del.) International Speedway.

Although the statistics might not suggest it, Almirola and the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang team have come oh so close to hoisting the trophy at Dover in the Cup Series. In the fall 2018 race there, Almirola started 11th and gradually made his way into the lead by the final stage. He led a total of 64 laps, but contact with the wall while racing aggressively in the closing laps ruined his victory bid and left him with a 13th-place finish. It was the first laps led on the concrete mile oval for the now-36-year-old and, although the finish wasn’t what he wanted, he completed one of his best races at a track 1 mile in length or shorter, leaving him with confidence heading into this weekend’s races.

“We had a shot to win that race,” Almirola said. “Every time I go back there, I think about how we have the capabilities to run up front and win, which is the mindset we want every weekend. We have run better this year than we ever have, so there’s no reason we can’t run up front all weekend.”

Almirola has four NASCAR Xfinity Series starts at Dover and finished inside the top-15 each time. He has two starts there in the NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series and captured his second NASCAR national series win by driving into victory lane there in May 2010. His only other Dover start in the Truck Series resulted in a 12th-place finish.

Almirola has earned 10 top-10 finishes in the last 12 races with five of those being top-fives. The No. 10 Smithfield Ford driver sits eighth in the driver standings for his career-best points position after 23 races.

Almirola has career totals of two wins, two poles, 23 top-five finishes, 75 top-10s and 801 laps led in 338 starts. He has led a total of 264 laps this year at eight different venues.

Almirola and his longtime partner Smithfield Foods have collaborated to honor frontline hometown heroes by showcasing a special paint scheme on the No. 10 Ford this weekend. Smithfield looks to honor those who are putting their own health and safety at risk in a selfless act to protect and nourish others around them. The Smithfield “Hometown Original Heroes” program provides the opportunity for fans to share the stories of their own “Hometown Hero.” Be it a nurse, doctor, food worker, public servant or anyone who is on the frontlines each and every day, Smithfield and Almirola want to hear their stories and give.

To nominate a hometown hero, visit www.SmithfieldHometownHeroes.com and submit a one-minute video nominating the “Hometown Hero.” Ten heroes will be chosen to have their stories told and will have their names riding onboard the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang at a race during the NASCAR playoffs this fall. The heroes will also receive a VIP race day experience and full-year supply of Smithfield “Hometown Original” bacon.

Almirola’s performance in previous doubleheader weekends gives him optimism for another solid weekend. He earned back-to-back top-fives at Pocono (Pa.) Raceway in June with finishes of third and fifth, and he earned a sixth-place finish in the Sunday race two weekends ago at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn.

“I really enjoy doubleheader weekends,” Almirola said. “I believe my physical training certainly helps when it’s hot and you lose upwards of seven pounds in the car before racing the next day. I’m ready to take on the Monster Mile twice this weekend. I’m up for the challenge.”

Aric Almirola: Driver of the No. 10 Smithfield Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

What do you like about Dover?

“I love going to Dover because it’s one of those places you go 170 mph but you feel like you’re going 300 mph. We found speed over the past few years and we’ve raced there with the new package and built some notes. I’m really looking forward to getting back there knowing we can compete for a win.”

How do you train for doubleheader weekends like Dover?

“A lot of heat training and cycling. I like to get used to the heat and do a lot of endurance training to get myself prepared for these weekends. Hydration is key, though.”

Clint Bowyer is 50/1 to win at Dover Doubleheader

CLINT BOWYER

Important Doubleheader Weekend in Dover

KANNAPOLIS, North Carolina (Aug. 17, 2020) – Clint Bowyer would love nothing better than to win one or both of the NASCAR Cup Series races Saturday and Sunday at Dover (Del.) International Speedway. But, if he can’t win, he’d probably settle for leaving Dover Sunday night having mathematically secured a spot in the 16-driver playoffs as the series then heads to the Aug. 29 regular-season finale on the Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway oval.

Bowyer said he and his No. 14 Stewart-Haas Racing team are focused as much on using the next two weeks in preparation for the opening round of the playoffs that begin Sept. 6 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway as they are on securing the playoff berth this weekend at Dover.

“Yes we want to clinch a playoff spot as soon as possible, but we also want to go into the playoffs with some momentum,” he said. “So I’m focusing on running well this weekend in Dover and making sure we are ready for the playoffs. We pay attention to the other guys around us in points, but the best way to get into the playoffs and have the success we want is to make sure we are running good.”

After finishing sixth in last Sunday’s race on the road course at Daytona, Bowyer is 14th in the playoff standings with a 66-point cushion for the final transfer spot into the 16-driver playoff field. Without winning, drivers can score a maximum 50 points in a single race, so any lead better than that come Sunday night secures a spot for Bowyer in the playoffs.

He couldn’t pick a much better track than Dover to host a doubleheader of racing at such an important time in the season. The mile-long, high-banked, concrete oval in Delaware has been good to the Emporia, Kansas native over the years.

In 28 starts there, he owns three top-five finishes and 16 top-10s and has led 83 laps. He owns two NASCAR Xfinity Series victories there. He led 70 laps and beat Matt Kenseth by .547 of a second on Sept. 23, 2006 to win his third of eight career Xfinity Series victories. His most recent Xfinity Series victory also came at Dover, on Sept. 26, 2009, when he led 83 laps and beat Mike Bliss to the checkered flag by 1.319 seconds.

“Ever since I’ve been at SHR, we’ve seemed to have some really good cars at Dover,” Bowyer said. “We’ve been so close to taking home that Miles The Monster (a replica of the track’s 46-foot mascot) trophy. I hope we are just as good this weekend. If we are, then we have as good of a chance as anyone. You’ve got to fight this ‘monster’ every lap. I won a couple of Xfinity races there – haven’t won a Cup race – but love this racetrack.”

As he did the last two races at Michigan and Daytona, Bowyer hopes to start off well this weekend and keep earning bonus points. He finished second and fourth in the first two stages at Daytona, upping his 2020 bonus point total to 106 – 11th best among all drivers. He’s also won three stages in 2020.

“That’s what we need to do this weekend and carry that over into Daytona and the start of the playoffs,” he said. “Once those playoffs start, every point counts. With no practice or qualifying, to get bonus points we’re going to have to be really good when we roll off the truck.”

Bowyer will carry the black-and-red colors of Haas Automation on his No. 14 for both races this weekend. Haas Automation is America’s leading builder of CNC machine tools. Founded by Gene Haas in 1983, Haas Automation manufactures a complete line of vertical and horizontal machining centers, turning centers and rotary tables and indexers. All Haas products are built in the company’s 1.1 million-square-foot manufacturing facility in Oxnard, California, and distributed through a worldwide network of Haas Factory Outlets.

“I hope good runs at Michigan and then last week at Daytona have us on a roll we can carry into Dover this weekend,” Bowyer said.

If he’s correct, he could leave Delaware Sunday night with a spot in the 2020 Cup Series playoffs.

CLINT BOWYER, Driver of the No. 14 Haas Automation Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing:

Do you enjoy Dover?

“This is a fun racetrack. This is a challenging racetrack, a very competitive racetrack, one of the most competitive and challenging tracks I think we go to. The balance of your car is just so important, balancing those front tires to the rear. You’ve got to enjoy places like this. If you don’t, it’s a long day. Dover is always a cool track that I think every driver looks forward to because it’s a driver’s track. You’ve got to man up, get on top of that wheel and make things happen. There are just so many things going on there on that concrete surface and high banks. It’s a lot of fun. If you win there, you’ve earned it.”

How important is experience at Dover?

“I’m telling you, this is one of the toughest tracks. Here’s the thing about this track – it’s hard enough to get around there by yourself, then you get to racing somebody and now you get frustrated and it’s so easy to get yourself in trouble on that racetrack. That being said, I think younger drivers get themselves in trouble in racing conditions on this demanding racetrack.”

Is there more pressure at tracks where you’ve had success?

“I think so – there’s a little bit more pressure. There’s a reason there’s some pressure – it’s because we have performed there and we need to do it again. I feel like we can back that up and I’m fairly confident in that. You don’t take anything for granted, but this is one of those tracks where you kind of just go in and usually things work out.”

Kyle Busch is 10/1 to win 2020 Drydene 311 at Dover

KYLE BUSCH

Double the Green at Dover

HUNTERSVILLE, North Carolina (Aug. 18, 2020) – Kyle Busch will be seeing double the green this weekend at Dover (Del.) International Speedway in hopes of capturing the checkered flag for the first time this season.

Busch, driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries for Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR), will head to Dover with not one, but two chances to win Saturday and Sunday and gain valuable points with just three races remaining in the NASCAR Cup Series regular season. All three races, starting with this weekend’s Dover doubleheader and concluding with the regular-season finale on the Daytona (Fla.) International Speedway oval, will feature the green lightning scheme of JGR founding partner Interstate Batteries.

The defending NASCAR Cup Series champion sits 10th in the driver standings, 100 points above the cutline for the 16-driver, 10-race playoff field, and he will most certainly dig deep this weekend to get his long-awaited first victory of the season to secure a playoff spot outright. While Busch’s season has been uncharacteristically frustrating with four DNF’s, he’s also brought home 10 top-five finishes, which is third-most in NASCAR’s top series behind points leader Kevin Harvick and JGR teammate Denny Hamlin. With three career wins at the track nicknamed the “Monster Mile,” Busch and his Interstate Batteries team know that just one win could set them up with some much-needed momentum with the playoffs approaching.

This weekend’s races at Dover will be the third and final doubleheader weekend scheduled for the Cup Series this season. Before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Pocono (Pa.) Raceway was already scheduled to run a June doubleheader. But doubleheaders were added at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn two weekends ago and Dover this weekend to help make up for races not run during the pandemic-induced 10-week schedule hiatus. Busch is coming off a strong performance in the most recent doubleheader weekend at Michigan, where he brought home a pair of top-five finishes in the Irish Hills.

In addition to his three career wins at Dover, Busch and his Interstate Batteries team have some impressive overall stats there to bolster their confidence this weekend. Along with the wins in NASCAR’s top series, Busch has scored five NASCAR Xfinity Series wins and four NASCAR Gander RV & Outdoors Truck Series wins at Dover. He’s led a whopping 1,210 laps in his previous 30 Cup Series starts at Dover, an average of 40 per race. He’s also scored 12 Cup Series top-fives and 19 top-10s at the high-banked, concrete mile oval.

With Interstate Batteries returning to the No. 18 Toyota for the next three races, Busch is encouraging fans to stop by a local Interstate dealer to get their vehicle batteries checked for their end-of-summer road trips. The summer months can be taxing on both man and machine, as hot weather has a far greater effect on batteries than the cold. One of the many ways JGR’s founding partner Interstate Batteries leverages its NASCAR program is by helping to remind consumers to have their batteries checked in all seasons, but especially during the summer heat.

So, as the Interstate Batteries team heads to Dover, Busch will have double the chances to win with a pair of 311-miles races on the Delmarva Peninsula in Delaware’s capital city in his Interstate Batteries green lightning scheme. A win would go a long way toward gaining some much-needed momentum as the playoffs loom on the horizon.

KYLE BUSCH, Driver of the No. 18 Interstate Batteries Toyota Camry for Joe Gibbs Racing:

With three wins at Dover, what is it you like about the Monster Mile?

“I always enjoy Dover. It’s a place you don’t want to be afraid of. You want to go out there and attack the place and give it everything you’ve got. It’s a really unique track. People say it reminds them of Bristol, but it really doesn’t for me. It’s a concrete surface and it’s relatively high banked and you carry a lot of speed into the corner there a lot longer than you do on the straightaway. It’s a place where handling characteristics take up most of your worries and make sure you are good in the corners, and I’ve just always loved going there. Looking forward to having Interstate Batteries back with us all weekend at Dover and next week at Daytona. Really love that new green lightning scheme and hope we can get them more than one good run over the next couple of weeks.”

How would you describe the feel of racing at Dover?

“It’s called the Monster Mile for a reason. It’s almost like going around a circle in a rollercoaster. The drop-off you have going into the corners, the sustained load that you have, as well as the G-force of turning around that turn and going back the other direction.”

With this era we are in with no practice, is it different at Dover than any of the other tracks you’ve been running at?

“You want to get as much practice as you can, anywhere. But Dover is one of those tracks that changes so much once rubber goes down on the racetrack. As the temperature would change and we went through Happy Hour. You could set a stopwatch for the final 20 minutes of Happy Hour and the track just went through such a light switch. Everyone would put on their final set of tires and the car handled nothing like it did the previous hour and a half before that. It’s pretty crazy how that works. But it probably shows you that they’ll just throw us out there in the race and have us figure it out in the race. The length of the runs there can be 80 to 90 laps. It doesn’t give you a lot of time to work on your racecars. You can go a lap down in 90 laps.”

What does it take to be successful at Dover?

“Dover, being a concrete track, is challenging. They’re all a challenge, but Dover is especially so, just because of the way you have to run around that place. The way tires sometimes wear out. The way the rubber gets put down there. You’ve got to be fast through the corner. Two-thirds of your lap time is through the turns rather than down the straightaway, so you definitely have to make sure you have a good-handling racecar – one that’s good in the beginning of the run on low air pressures and one that’s good at the end of the run on high air pressures, and even through traffic, too. Some of the most challenging times are when you’re trying to get through traffic with guys, so hope we can do that better than some other guys with our Interstate Batteries Toyota.”

Does going from concrete to asphalt change the way the car handles?

“We don’t run on an asphalt racetrack that’s banked like that or shaped like that. The mile tracks we go to that are asphalt are Phoenix and Loudon, and they are relatively flat. The concrete just changes the feel a little bit, of course, and changes the way you approach the racetrack, too.”

You have three Cup Series wins and a competitive history at Dover. What is your outlook with your history there?

“I went there when I was 18 to race in the Xfinity Series for my first time. It will scare you the first time you race there. You carry so much speed at that racetrack and, for it to be a mile in length and for it to be concrete – concrete surfaces that we race on, anyway, are a little bit slick. It’s definitely a rollercoaster ride and you need to treat it like it’s fun and not to be scared of the place, I think, because you can get so much out of that place. There are two ways about it – you can probably be really, really good there, or really, really bad there. Some days you’re going to be better than others, obviously, with how you can get your car set up compared to the competition.”

Dover is the final twin bill on NASCAR schedule

Jimmie Johnson is 25/1 to win Saturday at Dover.

Sadly, for the last time in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season, this weekend’s doubleheader at Dover International Speedway will be the last of the year.

Born before the coronavirus pandemic on the regular schedule at Pocono Raceway, the revised post-COVID-19 schedule has also done the doubleheader out of necessity to complete a full 36-race schedule at Kansas Speedway last month and Dover this weekend.

My immediate observations for Saturday’s and Sunday’s race which are both called the Drydene 311, each 89 miles shorter than a normal Dover race, is that only three races remain until the playoffs are set with 16 drivers to compete for the championship in the final 10 races. Drivers like Matt DiBenedetto (596 points) and William Byron (577) sit as the hunted in the No. 15 and No. 16 slots, respectively, in the standings while Jimmie Johnson (552), Erik Jones (542), and Tyler Reddick (520) must use this weekend to make some upward progression in points and ready themselves for a final race showdown next week at Daytona International Speedway’s 2.5-mile layout where anything can happen.

Next up is the race package that will be used on Dover’s 1-mile concrete layout that features 24 degrees of banking in the turns. I liken it to a bigger Bristol Motor Speedway (half-mile) and so do many of the crew chiefs who use similar setups for each. Which is why results from both Bristol races run so far should be reviewed.

READ MORE HERE....GAMING TODAY

Thursday, August 13, 2020

NASCAR Daytona Road Race Betting Preview: 2020 Go Bowling 235

Entry into Turn 1 is going to be a thrill to watch all day.

Go Bowling 235 Picks
Date: Sunday, August 16, 2020
TV-Time: NBC, 2:35 p.m. ET
Venue: Daytona International Speedway
Location: Daytona Beach, Florida

Handicapping NASCAR at Daytona

It took 23 races on the NASCAR Cup Series schedule before we finally get to see some road racing after both Sonoma Raceway and Watkins Glen’s scheduled events were canceled due to the pandemic which is how we get Sunday’s race on Daytona International Speedway’s 14-turn 3.57-mile road course.

It’s the first time NASCAR has used the layout run annually for the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona endurance race.

Road racing with right and left turns in the big bulky NASCAR cars are one of my most anticipated events of the season. They’re calling this a road course but it’s going to be something different we have never witnessed in NASCAR. It’s going to be fast, as in almost being scary fast.

Most of the tri-oval is still being used with corner banking set at 31 degrees which means these cars will be ripping at full throttle and because they’re using the 750 horsepower package -- no restrictor plate or tapered spacer -- we’ll see faster runs than we saw during the Daytona 500.

Of course, they have to slow down once they get to a situation where they have to make a hard left turn onto the road course section. NASCAR determined that this race package would be going too fast around turn 3 and 4 so they put an extra chicane between turn 4 and the start/finish line.

In normal road races, you can write four to five names down and have a great shot of seeing one of them win. It’s a select group of drivers that have genuine skills making left and right turns in a series that goes around in circles most weeks.

But not many of the skilled road drivers have raced on the Daytona course, which should probably be called a Roval like the one in Charlotte. Between no elevation changes and the high speeds on the high bankings, it’s hard to call it a road course.

Because of the track and drivers having little experience on it and not even being able to practice or qualifying on it, I think the pool of drivers to select from that have a legitimate shot at winning widens by up to 20 drivers having a shot which is good for betting. I would not be shocked if someone who has never won a road race wins Sunday.

Ride the Road Value?

Clint Bowyer, who leads all active drivers with 12 top-fives, could be your guy at 20/1 odds to win.

“I’m probably unique since at least I have some laps on the racetrack,” Bowyer said. “It was a long time ago (2013). I don’t even remember those laps, but I ran the Rolex 24 and have some experience on that track. I think there are definitely drivers and teams who have experience of running at the Rolex who will be ahead of the pack, ahead of the curve, for sure. But, it’s nothing like driving one of these Cup cars. That’s going to be totally new to all of us.”

Bowyer’s lone road course win was at Sonoma in 2012 and the last two years at the Charlotte Roval, he was third in 2018 and fourth in 2019. A couple of other reasons to support Bowyer this week besides the chunky odds is the 750 hp package that has performed the best for him this season with a fifth-place at Phoenix and runner-up at Bristol. It’s also desperation time for Bowyer to clinch a playoff berth -- four races remain -- and also secure a ride for 2021.

He drives for Stewart-Haas Racing, one of the elite programs, and hasn’t been offered a contract while almost all the other rides for good teams are slowly being claimed, and there are younger drivers like Erik Jones who may be sought after more than the 41-year-old Bowyer. But a win sure could push the odds in his favor to stay in the No. 14.

Big Names Still Respected

This week’s race package should be a major part of what driver is decided to bet on because a few teams have been better than others who are dominating the season overall. Kevin Harvick who has been very competitive on road courses (2 wins) over his career leads the series with six wins, but they all came with the 550 hp package. Denny Hamlin is next with five wins but doesn’t have any using the 750 hp package.

READ MORE HERE.......TOP-5 FINISH PREDICTION ON VEGASINSIDER.COM

Goodyear Tire Notes for Daytona Road Race

Tire: Goodyear Eagle Road Course Radials

Set limits:Cup: 7 sets for the race
Xfinity: 6 sets for the race;
Truck: 5 sets for the race

Tire Code: D-4926 (same on all four tire positions)

Tire Circumference: 2,240 mm (88.19 in.)

Minimum Recommended Inflation:Left Front — 28 psi; Right Front — 30 psi;
Left Rear — 22 psi; Right Rear — 22 psi

Storyline – High-speed road course requires a high-speed tire: As NASCAR was getting ready for its first races on the road course at Daytona International Speedway, Goodyear was already looking to its own racing history to come up with a tire set-up. With many years of history on this course in IMSA, Grand Am and Trans Am, Goodyear had a bit of a head start on what to bring to the track. This is a fast course that incorporates much of the two-and-a-half-mile oval that has been a staple of the NASCAR Cup schedule since 1959. With speeds expected to be close to what the Cup cars run at Watkins Glen International – as compared to a slower, more technical course like Sonoma Raceway – the Watkins Glen tire was determined to be the best fit.

"Our history in other series at Daytona, plus our extensive experience with these cars on the oval, helped us come up with our decision," said Greg Stucker, Goodyear’s director of racing. "We are very familiar with the requirements of running the banking as a part of this road course, and that helped us with choosing a tire with the correct compounds. While we were not able to run a test with the Cup cars on the course, we did confirm our recommendation using the simulation data that NASCAR and the OEM’s generated. The Watkins Glen tire is a good choice for this high speed course from a technical standpoint, and it is also a known quantity for the teams."

Notes – All three series on Watkins Glen tire for Daytona road course debut: Teams in all three NASCAR series in action on the Daytona road course will run the same tire . . . like at other NASCAR road courses, teams will run the same Goodyear tire code on all four corners of the car . . . this code is the same one Cup and Xfinity cars ran at Watkins Glen last season . . . as on all NASCAR road courses, teams will not run inner liners in their tires on the Daytona road course.

Wet Weather Tires – White-lettered tires on hand: Goodyear will bring its wet weather radials for use by teams in all NASCAR series on the Daytona road course, should NASCAR decide that conditions warrant . . . teams in each series are allowed up to two sets of "wets" for their race . . . this tire was last run by NASCAR Xfinity Series teams at Road America last week . . . in addition to the obvious difference of a tread pattern versus Goodyear’s dry weather "slick" tires, the "Goodyear" and "Eagle" lettering on the sidewalls of the wet weather tires is white, not the standard yellow.

- Jayski.com

Chase Elliott is 4/1 co-favorite to win Daytona road race

Chase Elliott has three road course wins.

Driver Chase Elliott on the inaugural DAYTONA Road Course event:
“I am super excited just to go somewhere new. Obviously, I’ve enjoyed Watkins Glen these past couple of years. We have a new challenge ahead with the DAYTONA Road Course. I think the biggest thing is not having any practice. I think it is going to be exciting but it’s also going to be really hard for the guys that have never made a lap there before. I think it’s going to give a pretty big advantage to those who’ve run the 24-hour race and have made any laps on that track. I’ve never made a lap. I don’t even know what turns are where. I’m going to get on iRacing and try and make some laps just to familiarize myself with the track. I’ve watched the 24-hour race, but I’ve never really paid a ton of attention to it. It’s going to be really difficult for people like me who have never seen it.”

ROAD RACE CHASE: Chase Elliott continues to prove his road-course prowess after winning two of the three NASCAR Cup Series road races last season and three of the last five. In September 2019, the No. 9 Chevrolet driver rallied back from mid-race trouble at the Charlotte Motor Speedway roval to earn his sixth career Cup victory and third on a road course. Elliott also dominated Watkins Glen International in August 2019 where he won for the second straight year. He remains the youngest road-course winner (22 years, 8 months, 8 days) of all time in the series.

MAKE IT THREE: This weekend, Elliott could become the most recent driver with three consecutive road-course race wins. The last person to collect three in a row was NASCAR Hall of Famer Tony Stewart (2004-2005). Four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon holds the record for most consecutive road-course wins with six (1997-2000).

NAPA KNOW HOW: On Sunday at Daytona, the No. 9 Chevrolet will feature the familiar blue, white and yellow NAPA AUTO PARTS paint scheme. The Atlanta-based company is serving as majority sponsor for Elliott and the No. 9 team for a total of 26 NASCAR Cup Series races this season.

ROAD-COURSE STATS: Elliott, driver of the No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE, is set to make his 11th Cup Series start on a road course this weekend. In his previous 10 races, he has collected the second-most wins (three) of active drivers, behind only Kyle Busch and Martin Truex Jr., who both have four. Elliott has garnered four top-five finishes, six top-10s and a total of 179 laps led. The Dawsonville, Georgia, native holds the best average finish (10.5) on road courses of active drivers.

STAGE POINT COLLECTOR: In 2020, Elliott has the second-most stage wins (five), has garnered the fourth-most stage points (185) and is currently fifth in the driver standings, 170 points behind leader Kevin Harvick.

PIT ROAD PROWESS: The No. 9 NAPA AUTO PARTS team owns the second-best average time for four-tire pit stops at 13.92 seconds through 22 races in the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series season. The team is comprised of jackman T.J. Semke, gasman John Gianninoto, tire carrier Jared Erspamer and tire changers Chad Avrit and Nick O’Dell.

FLORIDA NATIVE: This weekend, crew chief Alan Gustafson will return home for the inaugural NASCAR Cup Series race on the road course at Daytona. He hails from Ormond Beach, Florida, just down the road from Daytona International Speedway. After graduating from Seabreeze High School, he enrolled at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University to study mechanical engineering. Gustafson will set foot in Daytona in the midst of his 16th full-time season as a crew chief and his fifth year with Elliott.